Comprehensive Plan

City departments often get trapped in their daily department responsibilities and miss opportunities for coordinated efforts. The comprehensive plan will provide guidance for decision-making to ensure the entire City government is working towards the same goals so that time and resources are used efficiently and effectively to achieve the desired future. A comprehensive plan can: 

• Better coordinate the timing and installation of infrastructure, facilities and services to serve areas where future growth is most likely to occur
• Ensure that all elements of the built environment work together to create a high quality of life while also recognizing the value of protecting natural resources
• Improve economic development opportunities to maintain a resilient local economy
• Streamline decision making by clarifying the City’s policies
• Save money over the long term through greater efficiency

The plan will be designed for use by elected and appointed officials, City government administration and staff, residents, businesses and developers, and others with an interest in the future of High Point. It should be used to help guide the City's Capital Improvement Program (CIP). A theme that should be interwoven throughout the plan, and during the process of creating it, is that it involves and helps contribute equitably to the well-being of all individuals and groups living and working in the city. Once adopted the comprehensive plan will be the source of guidance to staff, boards and commissions, and City Council when responding to requests from residents and the development community.

A comprehensive plan should include steps such as, but not limited to: conducting a community inventory that will provide a background analysis of existing conditions to inform the planning process; conducting a policy audit to determine the relevancy of existing long-range planning policies; a review and update of the Community Growth Vision Statement (adopted in 2007); scenario planning to determine the desired growth scenario; and drafting a plan to achieve the desired growth scenario. Public involvement is a key component to creating a comprehensive plan and it is needed throughout the entire process. This can be achieved by holding community meetings, but innovative ways to engage and involve the public should be considered throughout the process. Utilizing social media and other innovative technologies to reach a broad spectrum of the community will be necessary to get the buy-in of the community.

Click on each link below for more information about each task.

Task 1: Community Inventory and Analysis (CIA) [Completed Fall 2021]

Task 2: Long-Range Plan Policy Audit [Anticipated to start in 2022]

Task 3: Creative Public Education

Task 4: Update Community Growth Vision Statement

Task 5: Scenario Planning

Task 6: Draft Plan Based on Preferred Scenario

Task 7: Plan Adoption

Task 8: Implementation and Monitoring